Kantar data on free U2 album consumption by Apple device users.

[bono_212]

The first stat I don't find hard to believe at all. After all, U2 didn't just stop being popular because they stopped being "relevant".

The second stat's a little harder to swallow.

 

[Galeongirl]

I had no idea iTunes was used by predominantly older folks. There's loads of teenagers and adolescents with macbooks, iphones and the likes, so I'd assume they use it. Same with Safari.

The only reason I use iTunes is because I still use my U2 ipod. And I don't really mind the program that much.

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

The first stat I don't find hard to believe at all. After all, U2 didn't just stop being popular because they stopped being "relevant".

The second stat's a little harder to swallow.

The 95% stat is actually easier to believe, because every owner of an iTunes account received the album...

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

You don't read very well. The article says twice as many people on iOS. That's not some huge claim. There are, for instance, about 1 billion Android users, which is about 2x more than iOS, that clearly aren't included in this (stupid) stat.

Ummmm...

if you honestly believe that today, in the year 2015, that twice as many owners of iOS devices listen to U2 than they do Taylor Swift and Katy Perry COMBINED then there's really no use in debating this topic with you any longer.

Yea. The whole discussion is regarding those who have iThings. Thus then... ummm. Yea.

But thanks for the information on people having other things than iPhones. I just assumed everyone had one.

Sent from my Nexus 5 using U2 Interference mobile app

 

[Moser]

I saw that the sample of 978 was taken from Chicago, Illinois of all white males between 30 and 50 years of age and with an average income of $80,000 per year?

No bias there

Sent from my iPhone using U2 Interference

I also saw that exact prerequisites for being surveyed was ownership of a U2 iPod, replicas of Bono's Fly glasses, a distaste for Coldplay, delay pedals, and a Vox guitar amp.

Honestly, if you don't believe a marketing research firm because it doesn't feel right to you, then fuck it. No one cares anyway.

All I can say is, U2 360 was the biggest tour of my generation. HTDAAB along with American Idiot were some of the most talked about albums during high school. And it wasn't uncommon to see Elevation tour T-shirts in the 7th grade. I'm only 25, and I've been a fan of the band since ATYCLB. My girlfriend, who predominately listens to alternative music like Bon Iver, Fleet Foxes, Lana Del Ray, and M83, thinks Every Breaking Wave and The Troubles is the shit, can't stand Mysterious Ways, thinks the Joshua Tree is just okay, and insists U2 in Under The Blood Red Sky is the coolest fucking musical event she has ever seen on video. If you think U2 is limited to a certain audience, then you are just ignorant to proclaim so. There are preteens making SOI fan videos on YouTube. They probably don't even know who U2 even looks like.

U2 always had fans across the entire age spectrum, and that doesn't make it surprising that a 1/4 of all active iTunes listeners listen to them, especially considering THEY GAVE AWAY A WHOLE FUCKING ALBUM TO EVERYBODY ON ITUNES. Good god, most of them probably are just listening to Every Breaking Wave because the song is fucking fantastic.

 

[LemonMelon]

Couldn't these people have just turned on shuffle and had one of the SOI songs automatically placed in their library pop up? If 95% of the people that listened to U2 also heard a track from SOI, that seems like a logical explanation.

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

Couldn't these people have just turned on shuffle and had one of the SOI songs automatically placed in their library pop up? If 95% of the people that listened to U2 also heard a track from SOI, that seems like a logical explanation.

Take your logic elsewhere. It is not welcome here.

 

[Galeongirl]

Couldn't these people have just turned on shuffle and had one of the SOI songs automatically placed in their library pop up? If 95% of the people that listened to U2 also heard a track from SOI, that seems like a logical explanation.

Yeah that seems like a very logical explanation indeed. Don't think it has a place here, it is Interference after all.

 

[Bad Exit]

Couldn't these people have just turned on shuffle and had one of the SOI songs automatically placed in their library pop up? If 95% of the people that listened to U2 also heard a track from SOI, that seems like a logical explanation.

Sure. That's the point.

Goal: to have as much people as possible to listen to the new album.

Strategic release: give the album for free.

Result: 25% of the people listens to it in January, twice more than the next artist and 5 months away from the release date and the delete option.

So yes. That's a pretty good explanation of why people are listening to it, and it not only doesn't changes at all what we're saying but actually reinforces it: the release method was a success despite that some people may think otherwise. If next time they could drop the album not only in the iWhatevers but in the androids aswell, they'd do it.

 

[Galeongirl]

Does it count if the song comes on your ipod/phone on shuffle but if you skip it? Or do you have to play the entire song for that?

 

[LemonMelon]

Yeah, that's what I was getting at. What a play constituted was left open-ended by the article, so I wasn't sure if a full run through was required. If you can just skip a track over and it counts as a play (I think this is an adjustable setting, I'm not sure what the default is), this data is impossible to draw any useful conclusions from.

 

[Cancer45]

I also saw that exact prerequisites for being surveyed was ownership of a U2 iPod, replicas of Bono's Fly glasses, a distaste for Coldplay, delay pedals, and a Vox guitar amp.

Honestly, if you don't believe a marketing research firm because it doesn't feel right to you, then fuck it. No one cares anyway.

All I can say is, U2 360 was the biggest tour of my generation. HTDAAB along with American Idiot were some of the most talked about albums during high school. And it wasn't uncommon to see Elevation tour T-shirts in the 7th grade. I'm only 25, and I've been a fan of the band since ATYCLB. My girlfriend, who predominately listens to alternative music like Bon Iver, Fleet Foxes, Lana Del Ray, and M83, thinks Every Breaking Wave and The Troubles is the shit, can't stand Mysterious Ways, thinks the Joshua Tree is just okay, and insists U2 in Under The Blood Red Sky is the coolest fucking musical event she has ever seen on video. If you think U2 is limited to a certain audience, then you are just ignorant to proclaim so. There are preteens making SOI fan videos on YouTube. They probably don't even know who U2 even looks like.

U2 always had fans across the entire age spectrum, and that doesn't make it surprising that a 1/4 of all active iTunes listeners listen to them, especially considering THEY GAVE AWAY A WHOLE FUCKING ALBUM TO EVERYBODY ON ITUNES. Good god, most of them probably are just listening to Every Breaking Wave because the song is fucking fantastic.

 

[CosmoKramer]

Yeah, that's what I was getting at. What a play constituted was left open-ended by the article, so I wasn't sure if a full run through was required. If you can just skip a track over and it counts as a play (I think this is an adjustable setting, I'm not sure what the default is), this data is impossible to draw any useful conclusions from.

My take: this isn't an automated survey pulled by Apple that tracks downloads or song clicks, which is where the "how many people experienced" SOI" number came from.

They surveyed users and a "listen" to me and I would bet most people is listening to a song not "it came on I hated it and skipped it".

I could be wrong but that is what I believe.




Sent from my iPhone using U2 Interference

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

My take: this isn't an automated survey pulled by Apple that tracks downloads or song clicks, which is where the "how many people experienced" SOI" number came from.

They surveyed users and a "listen" to me and I would bet most people is listening to a song not "it came on I hated it and skipped it".

I could be wrong but that is what I believe.




Sent from my iPhone using U2 Interference

Except Apple wasn't involved in the research whatsoever, an independent company did it, and they didn't share their methodology.

 

[Bad Exit]

Except Apple wasn't involved in the research whatsoever, an independent company did it, and they didn't share their methodology.

Exactly

My take: this isn't an automated survey pulled by Apple

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

Sure. That's the point.

Goal: to have as much people as possible to listen to the new album.

Strategic release: give the album for free.

Result: 25% of the people listens to it in January, twice more than the next artist and 5 months away from the release date and the delete option.

So yes. That's a pretty good explanation of why people are listening to it, and it not only doesn't changes at all what we're saying but actually reinforces it: the release method was a success despite that some people may think otherwise. If next time they could drop the album not only in the iWhatevers but in the androids aswell, they'd do it.

If the intent of the release was to spam people into submission, then yes...

But alas, a simple look at the charts, or at YouTube views, or sluggish (for them) ticket sales will tell you that no, the release was not a strategic marketing success whatsoever.

 

[mikal]

Can a mod please change the thread title to:

"Watch people who say release strategy was a failure squirm when the data shows the opposite"

 

[Moser]

But alas, a simple look at the charts, or at YouTube views, or sluggish (for them) ticket sales will tell you that no, the release was not a strategic marketing success whatsoever.

81 million listens in the first month.
26 million album downloads within the first month.
23% of iTunes user base have listened to an SOI song recently after four months.

"Not a strategic marketing success whatsoever."

Based on YouTube hits and shitty radio. You'd think music is only listened to by female teenagers.

"But nooooo.....here's why the numbers can be wrong until we know more about their methods."

If you want to learn more about their methods, then go ASK THEM. It's called E-MAIL! You ever heard of it?

 

[ImNotSleeping]

Can a mod please change the thread title to:

"Watch people who say release strategy was a failure squirm when the data shows the opposite"

We could charge admission to view this and donate the proceeds to One (RED).

 

[Catman]

I think a lot of us really want this information to be true, so we just take what's presented as is. But let's not begrudge others for questioning the merits of the data

 

[mikal]

I think a lot of us really want this information to be true, so we just take what's presented as is. But let's not begrudge others for questioning the merits of the data

Well, when you can predict who exactly is going to question the merits of the data based on their known history of being on the other side of the argument, it makes their questioning pretty laughable.

 

[Hewson]

Well, when you can predict who exactly is going to question the merits of the data based on their known history of being on the other side of the argument, it makes their questioning pretty laughable.

Same can be said for who is going to run with the data and claim U2 is as big as ever.

 

[mikal]

Same can be said for who is going to run with the data and claim U2 is as big as ever.

It's a good thing no one is saying that around here.

 

[Hollow Island]

1000 users out of millions? They probably could have grabbed another 1000 and got not one U2 play.

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

81 million listens in the first month.
26 million album downloads within the first month.
23% of iTunes user base have listened to an SOI song recently after four months.

"Not a strategic marketing success whatsoever."

Based on YouTube hits and shitty radio. You'd think music is only listened to by female teenagers.

"But nooooo.....here's why the numbers can be wrong until we know more about their methods."

If you want to learn more about their methods, then go ASK THEM. It's called E-MAIL! You ever heard of it?

I want aware that the only people who used YouTube for music consumption were teen girls. Someone should let Google know. It appears their merging of their music app with YouTube may have been a major oversight on their part! Perhaps they should hire Kantar to help them with their demographic analysis!

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

Can a mod please change the thread title to:

"Watch people who say release strategy was a failure squirm when the data shows the opposite"

Yea. I actually did provide you with a few statistics that tend to fly in the face of this data when you asked the last time. Said data was apparently faulty though. Apparently only tween girls use YouTube. Who knew?!

 

[mikal]

Yea. I actually did provide you with a few statistics that tend to fly in the face of this data when you asked the last time. Said data was apparently faulty though. Apparently only tween girls use YouTube. Who knew?!

I mean, yeah fine whatever. If you want to boast your YouTube research, go ahead. It doesn't really matter. The last I checked, U2 didn't drop their album for free on YouTube. It was iTunes, wasn't it?

 

[lemonfly]

I saw that the sample of 978 was taken from Chicago, Illinois of all white males between 30 and 50 years of age and with an average income of $80,000 per year?

No bias there

Sent from my iPhone using U2 Interference

If this is true (can you quote a source?) then I'm not sure this Kantar data is saying all that much. Other than 40 year old white dudes ambling to work in their SUVs like to listen to the odd U2 song on the radio (or on their Apple gizmo where it has been freely dispatched). Not particularly revelatory (nor the "relevance" U2 are probably seeking). When you start cherrypicking stats, you always run the risk of missing the forest for the trees #philosophy101

 

[mikal]

If this is true (can you quote a source?) then I'm not sure this Kantar data is saying all that much. Other than 40 year old white dudes ambling to work in their SUVs like to listen to the odd U2 song on the radio (or on their Apple gizmo where it has been freely dispatched). Not particularly revelatory (nor the "relevance" U2 are probably seeking). When you start cherrypicking stats, you always run the risk of missing the forest for the trees #philosophy101

He was joking.

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

I mean, yeah fine whatever. If you want to boast your YouTube research, go ahead. It doesn't really matter. The last I checked, U2 didn't drop their album for free on YouTube. It was iTunes, wasn't it?

Right.

So it was forced into everyone's iTunes account. They didn't have a choice. It will obviously skew the numbers up on that medium, as most people really didn't care as much to actually delete the album, leading to millions of accidental plays in various shuffle plays.

Seems to me a much better way to judge the album's true reach would be to see how far it's permeated in mediums where it wasn't force fed, yes?

No? Oh, okay.

These statistics are highly suspect and even if true do not give an accurate representation of the actual success of this album. That's clear as day. In order to truly judge success we would need to see how many of these plays were purposeful vs random shuffle plays, and how often the songs are repeated, and how long they consider a "listen" to be. Without that information this data is incredibly incomplete.

Again, if the idea was to simply spam the album so that people could listen to it regardless of whether they wanted to or not, then yes: mission accomplished. Raging success.

U2 acknowledged that album sales are dead and tried another approach. Admirable? Yes. True? Yes. But did they overshoot their approach in their undying need to be the biggest shit ever? Yes.

The true measure of whether or not this marketing approach was successful would show in other ways. Ticket sales, for one, which are sluggish by U2's own lofty expectations. Higher than most? Yes. Less than what they expected? Clearly.

The songs haven't gained traction on adult formats. They haven't been successful on other formats that don't begin with a little i.


The release overshadowed the album. It set them back. I don't know how this is even arguable at this point, other than just sheer blindness to reality.

Do I think a big promotional push, starting with the week on Fallon, would have saved the album? If done correctly, yes. It would have gotten the attention back on to the music and off of the FUBARed release. Unfortunately that didn't happen thanks to Bono's inability to avoid rouge CitiBikes.